


Quest of the Missing Persons

by Trash_000



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Dnd Inspired, Don’t Judge Me, F/M, I like Dnd, I like ONCE, I liked the idea on merging Dnd with ONCE, mild sexism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-05-26
Packaged: 2019-05-14 00:55:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14759529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trash_000/pseuds/Trash_000
Summary: Rumplestiltskin follows five young women on a quest to find some missing persons- one of which is his own son, Bae.What foe’s will he face? What friends will he make? Will he find his son? Will romance blossom? Follow along on the quest to find out!— A little bit of Dnd terms and such mixed in with the Enchanted Forest we all know and love because I am a nerd who wanted to see if I could pull it off—





	Quest of the Missing Persons

**Author's Note:**

> Yo, so this is just a concept I couldn’t get out of my head and really wanted to try and write about.  
> Chapter one is just some set up- so don’t be thrown off because of that... I’ll get into the actual adventure in upcoming chapters!   
> Basically me and some friends started playing dnd weekly and certain things reminded me of the fairytale land in ONCE. So I decided to see what would happen if I merged them together....  
> Other characters from the show are expected to make appearances later on, (if this gets continued), and ships will fall into place later as well... read up and enjoy!
> 
> ~Trash

Rumplestiltskin had always been a weak and cowardly man, and in a way that made him quiet selfish. If something wasn’t in his own personal best interests, it was unlikely; if it was also dangerous- fucking forget it! If it couldn’t be bargained in his favour it wasn’t going to happen. That’s why he’d stayed home rather than enlisting to the battles like the other boys turned men his age as he grew older. He even took it so far as to breaking his own ankle once to escape being drafted when he’d been 21 and measures got desperate enough for conscription. The action had turned him cripple and saved himself from ever entering the fray however it’d also made his everyday life more difficult- he’d needed a damn walking stick well before most, could no longer run or jump or dance around like he once could, and yet considered it a blessing. His at that time pregnant wife Milah on the other hand- hadn’t. She couldn’t believe he’d stoop so low, couldn’t stand the idea that she’d have to one day tell their child the tale of his fathers selfish cowardice, and that’s why only a few months into young Baelfire’s life, she’d left Rumplestiltskin with the baby boy in the dead of the night with not even a written word notice.

Rumplestiltskin never knew what’d truly happened, but rumour had it she’d jumped town with a Roguish Pirate boy-toy she’d been hiding from him. When Bae grew old enough to ask what happened Rumple told him she was dead, as for to them it was true enough. She was dead to their little family. 

It wasn’t until Baelfire’s 10th birthday when the child learned the truth. When his mother and her new roguish pirate husband landed in town to try and take the boy with them to the sea, saying he was old enough to be of use to them. That was not in Rumplestiltskin’s best interest and he certainly thought it to be dangerous. The ocean was probably one of the most dangerous places on this Earth and a couple of rogues wanted to subject his son to it- not a chance in hell. With Bae yelling at him for answers as to why his mother was living, with whoever this Killian Jones was demanding Bae would be better working hard at life on the waters, with Milah standing there glaring him down, insisting he was the coward when she’d been the one who’d last ran… Rumplestiltskin’s fragile mind made a choice on a whim. He’d drawn a knife from the kitchen utilities and stabbed the woman a total of 4 times in the chest. “She’s dead now, M’boy! Now will you stop asking?!” He’d near shouted in a voice so unlike his own to his crying son as the Pirate lunged at him in a vengeance filled rage only to lose his hand to the blade. 

It was with the man yelling in agonizing pain over Milah’s corpse, blood dripping from the both of them, and Bae’s fearful, panicking, trauma induced sobbing that Rumple seemed to weigh in with what he’d done. Eyes wide, and body shaking he dropped the knife to the ground and stared at the mess he’d made. “What have I done?” He asked himself quietly backing away with full intentions of running from his mistake and not looking back. However as he’d turned to the door to make his escape he found himself faced with two beings. A Fae woman dressed in blue and what appeared to be a Drow- or dark elf as some refer to them as- in a long dark cloak. Time seemingly froze around them so they could speak.

“What you’ve done is proven the Fae Council’s suspicions.” Said the Fae. “You Rumplestiltskin, are truly dark-hearted. A selfish, selfish beast hiding beneath the mask of a man. You won’t do a thing unless you have the upper hand or gain something material from it. You refused to help your own people in the events of war, not wishing to risk anything while your former classmates were out there dying. You’ve spent a decade lying and deceiving your boy, not telling him the truth of you or his mother, and now you’ve murdered one, crippled her partner, and traumatized the other. The final straw however is seeing how you’d deal with it all. You were about to run weren’t you? You’d have left your boy motherless, fatherless, and afraid.” She clasped her hands before her and shook her head disapprovingly. “You’re a monster Rumplestiltskin. A beast. And I’m afraid I have no choice but to interfere and alter fate.” She looked to the Drow, eyes pressing him to explain further. 

The Drow’s head drew up knocking back his hood to reveal his large, piercing, inhuman, amber eyes with their unnaturally large blacker-than-night pupils staring a hole into him as if to see his soul. “I am Zoso. The Dark One. Have you heard of me?” 

Rumplestiltskin timidly shook his head. “N-no… is it like The Chosen One? The Haunted One?” 

The Drow- Zoso chuckled lowly “In a sense, you could say it is.” He shrugged. “You’ve been chosen to take on the burden of the Dark-one’s curse. Like the Haunted one your fate changes now with this harrowing moment- this fateful decision…” he gestured around the room frozen in time, and Rumplestiltskin took another moment to sink his eyes on what he’d done. The wounds in his ex-love’s bosom looked deep and ragged, rough and careless- as they’d been- and the pooling blood sparkled metallically in the dim light. Killian Jones’s features were intense as he glared up towards him, great pain and anger etched into the lines of his face and the deep want for revenge lay within the irises of his eyes. However the most horrifying sight was that of his son’s. 

Rumplestiltskin was taken aback by Baelfire’s cowering form in the far corner of the small room near his spinning wheel. The boys nails dug dangerously into his scalp, fingers tugging at hair in clumps as his eyes shone with trauma and the most intense fear Rumple had ever seen on the boys features was directed towards him. Face shining with fat fresh tears, mouth drawn in a worried line that could only possibly produce a whimpering cry. Rumplestiltskin swallowed heavily as the Drow continued his speech. “However you will not be haunted by shadows or nightmares or whispers in the dark - no. All that will haunt you is the darkness growing within your own heart pumping dark-magic though your every vein!” Zoso jabbed two fingers into Rumplestiltskin’s chest, pointing to his heart with a small jolt of electricity coming from the action to further his statement. 

Rumple gulped once more as he brought his hands up over his heart and felt it’s racing beat in his chest. “What… what happens to me then? What does the Dark One do?” 

The Blue Fae stepped in once more. “The Dark One always takes a Drow’s form.” She said gesturing towards Zoso. “No matter their original form. The only being capable of handling a darkness like yours is a Dark Elf and therefore you will be transformed by the curse. The transformation is slow and painful, it takes just over a year and a half. Your eyes will burn like fire as they change to amber, your ears cartilage will rearrange itself into sharp points, you flesh will ache as its colour changes. But this pain is short-lived in comparison to the long, long life of servitude. A being so dark can not be allowed to wander free, and is therefore under the control of the Fae Council, bound by magic older than time.” 

“And what about my boy? Baelfire? What happens to him while I serve?”Rumple couldn’t help but ask. 

The Fae glanced to the cowering boy in the corner. “He will further grow up under the watch of Killian Jones. A Godmother Fae will be assigned to keep him from any more harm than necessary. The boy has had his fair share of trauma handed to him already.” 

Rumplestiltskin looked to his boots in contemplation he knew better than to argue with a Fae. Everyone did. It was common knowledge that the Fae controlled most of the land’s creatures. Their word was a step above that of a king and more than oftentimes final, yet still he couldn’t help but query “Is there a way to decline the offer? To keep living life as I’ve been?” Both the Fae and the Drow shook their heads in unison and he knew there was no room for bargaining. Rumple let out a sigh of loss. “Very well then. Consider me cursed.” 

The Fae then began the age-old tradition of transferring the Dark-One’s curse from vessel to vessel, or slowly sucking the magic from Zoso’s veins into a dark swirling ball between the three of them. Rumple watched from behind his hands as the power mixed and mingled with itself in its tight orb before focusing his attention on Zoso’s quickly changing form. The Drow turned out to not have been a Drow at all but instead an old man who was rapidly growing older by the second, hair growing long and white, skin wrinkling and sagging, joints getting weak to the point the man dropped to his knees. It was obvious to Rumplestiltskin that Zoso had been the Dark One for a very long time- perhaps even a century or longer. This truly was a lifelong commitment of a curse wasn’t it?

A lump formed in his throat when the Fae turned to him and started directing the buzzing globe of darkness his way. He froze in place as the silky dark energy surrounded him and began absorbing into his skin to mingle with his blood. However it appeared something had gone wrong as his eyes immediately flashed in a burning sensation as they changed colour right that instance, as his skin itched with the rapid growing of golden scales, his hair tugged at itself as it’s colour transformed as well and his locks twisted and waved, and his chest and palms warmed with the presence of a powerful magic. He wasn’t becoming a Drow like it’d been said he would- he was transforming into… into… he wasn’t sure. 

The Blue Fae watched with wide eyes “No-“ she said cutting off her magic to stop the transition, The Un-absorbed darkness diminished in the air, however it was too late, he’d already become a Dark One. But the thing was, his form wasn’t a recognized being and therefore couldn’t be controlled by Fae magic- he was free. The Fae stared at him “What happened? What are you?” She asked.

“Well I’m the Dark One, Dearie.” Rumplestiltskin said, his voice in that high nasally octave that hadn’t sounded like his moments earlier but now certainly was. “And as it appears- you made a mistake. You know what went wrong, don’t deny it. Now why don’t you turn and take leave. I’ll clean up around here.” He gracefully turned on his heel, finding that he no longer felt a twinge of pain in his ankle, he was free to walk and play as well. How fun! 

The Fae cussed uncharacteristically under her breath, eyes wider as she re-assessed what had happened moments before “Willingness, acceptance.…” she said disbelievingly. “The Dark One should never possess either of those things.… you willingly accepted your new fate…” She frowned “How could I’ve been so blind?! How did you know?”

The…scaly impish sort of creature, for lack of proper word, He spun once more with a giggle.  
And simply shrugged half-heartedly. “I didn’t.” And with that he instinctively twirled his hand in a rather flamboyant gesture and sent the Fae and her former-Dark-One friend away to gods know where. 

Time in the hut didn’t commence after their disappearance however and with a tight-lipped frown at the scene, Rumplestiltskin realized he truly needed to clean the mess up himself. With another twist of his wrist he sent Milah’s body and Killian away to yet again- he wasn’t sure where, but he didn’t care much, before turning to eye his son’s form. Knowing he didn’t quite know how to unfreeze time himself yet, and also knowing his boy would never be the same if he could, Rumple decided to leave things as they were until he learned more of his powers and his abilities. He poofed away in a cloud of red smoke much like how he’d sent the others away with, a place he’d visited once as an adolescent clear in his mind with suspicion he’d find all he needed there- That spooky magic castle deep in the woods with the library of spell books. 

———00———  
“Papa! Papa! Stop! Please!” Rumplestiltskin heard his son yell. “Don’t hurt him- it was an accident! Nobody needs to get hurt!” 

Rumple sharply shot a glare over his shoulder to his now 15 year old son. “But somebody already has! He hurt you!” His grip on his hunting dagger tightened as he held it threateningly against an older boys throat. 

“It’s just a scrape Papa- I’ll be alright!” Bae pleaded. “Please Papa- let August go… he didn’t mean to trip me over- right August?”

The older boy gulped down the lump of fear that swelled at the back of his throat and answered shakily. “No sir! W-We were just kicking around the ball- it’s a game- and he tripped over my foot! I didn’t do it on purpose sir- I wouldn’t!” 

“He’s a friend Papa- he wouldn’t hurt me on purpose! Please don’t hurt him!” His eyes welled with tears “Papa, please!” 

Rumple looked between his son and the older boy- August Booth, the woodworkers only son, aged 16 who appeared stricken with fear and sighed heavily. He shoved the boy back and turned on his heel. “Play more carefully next time…” he threatened lightly as he wandered off towards their hovel at the edge of the village before the woods line. He had intentions to spin his vexation away. 

It was a little short of two hours later when Baelfire came home with some bread and cheese for their supper. Rumplestiltskin was still spinning away, his straw turning gold between his fingertips- his new source of income as nobody would buy threads and yarns from him anymore- but ceased his ministrations when his boy approached and offered him some of the bread and cheese on an old chipping clay plate. He took the plate and the two of them ate in a relative silence for a few moments as Rumple observed his son’s bandaged knee. He sighed softly “Bae…” he began, his voice low and rough similar to how it’d been before his curse. “Listen, I’m real sorry about how I acted earlier towards your friend…” 

“I know Papa.” Bae nodded understandingly. “I know it’s not your fault. The Fae People’s curse makes you act that way… I’m only a little upset that you lost control.” 

Rumple nodded as well. “Yeah… me too, Bae. I just… you know I hate to see you hurt. You know that after-“ his son cut him off.

“That after Mother died all those years ago, you swore to protect me from harm. I know Papa. But Mother wouldn’t want you to hurt others just for me… she wouldn’t want you to kill. And I wouldn’t want you to either. You’re not a killer Papa…”

The images of Milah’s bleeding corpse, and Baelfire’s traumatized face flashed through his mind and he quickly shook them away- Bae didn’t remember that night, he’d made sure of it, and he was glad he had. He couldn’t imagine how different his son would act towards him if he did remember. Instead false memories of him coming home to find a Fae had cursed his father for no good reason was what the boy thought be truth. “She wouldn’t, you’re right about that.” He commented simply. 

“Mother would want me to grow up to be strong and brave for myself.” The adolescent continued on. “Right Papa?” Rumple only nodded and so the boy went on. “There’s rumours of a war Papa, against some Orcs near the border. They’ve lowered the enlisting age to 16. My birthday is next month… I want to enlist, Papa. I want to go fight!”

Rumplestiltskin stared at his son with wide eyes a moment, before his expression narrowed, brows furrowed, and he shook his head. “Absolutely not.” 

“What? Why not?!” The boy asked a tinge of aggravation to his tone. 

“Because it’s a death sentence Bae!” Rumple said. “Worthless sacrifice! I thought you’d be smart enough to realize that! Nobody who goes into that war comes back. That’s why I never went myself…”

The teen boy shook his head “No- you were just scared Papa! Scared of leaving me and Mother- and I respect that, I do, but you were still just too scared!” Tears welled in his eyes. “Papa, I’m not scared- I’m no coward. I want to fight!”

“Baelfire, you listen to me- when you look to the horizons at sunset what do you see, son? Red. That red is not the fires of the battle son, it’s the blood of our people. It’s the blood of children. The blood of children like you… I won’t lose you like that Bae. Not when you have the choice to live.” He told his son, his voice breaking on certain words as emotion. He was internally glad drafting wasn’t being put into place with this war and hoped it wouldn’t come down to Bae having no choice like Rumple had had.

“Papa-“ 

“No Bae.” Rumplestiltskin interrupted his boy with a shake of his head. “I won’t allow you to. You’re still young- still a boy- and could have a whole life ahead of you. One you won’t have if you’re crushed in a battle two months from now.” His voice was surprisingly level and calm- he was forcing it to be as such. “Wait. Think it over a while. When you’ve become a man- if the wars still raging then and you still think it a good idea to fight it, we’ll speak of it again.” He made no promises of allowing his son to go, for he knew that even when his son reached 18, he still wouldn’t want him charging to his death. 

———00———  
That’s how nearly three years later Rumplestiltskin found himself out questing- the mission being to find his missing son. The year before, on Baelfires 18th birthday the war had come to be discussed. Yes it’d still been ongoing, and yes, Bae still held intentions to fight. Rumple had once again told his son he disapproved. Told him he wouldn’t support it. That he wouldn’t allow it. He’d cut dinner short that night and sent Bae to bed before going to spin. He’d fallen asleep at his wheel and when he’d awoken Baelfire had run off into the night with a bag of his things leaving behind nothing but the written word of:

“I’m a man now, Papa. I’m going to fight like one. -Bae” 

So Rumplestiltskin had set out on foot towards the fronts, hoping to get there no later than a day after his son.. Using his powers he’d ended the Orc War quickly enough and when he went towards the camps in search of his son he’d found out from others that his boy had never made it there. He’d never stepped foot in the war camps, he’d never enlisted. So if his boy wasn’t here- where was he? Rumplestiltskin made it his mission to find out. 

Throughout that first year Rumplestiltskin spent his time scanning through nearby towns and villages thinking that maybe Baelfire got distracted in one or changed his mind about fighting and found a place to settle instead. He never caught sight of him, and anyone he asked said they’d never seen or heard of the boy. The people who suggested his son had died, he killed, because Bae was not dead! He could feel it, he knew Bae was out there somewhere, alive, just lost. Suggesting he was dead sounded more like a threat than anything to Rumplestiltskin. 

Baelfire hadn’t gone home to their hovel in their village either. That was the place Rumple most frequently checked in the beginning. Every couple days he’s poof himself home in a puff of red smoke and spend an hour or so snooping around the village and demanding his neighbours to spill anything they knew- and they never knew anything. Bae hadn’t come home and it didn’t appear like he would so after the first three or four months Rumple had stopped checking in there more than once every few weeks.

His searches expanded beyond the local villages along the paths that would’ve taken Bae to the battles. He’d found himself in another kingdom altogether at some point, as that’s where the journey lead him. He’d no luck there either. He continued his quest and for the most part he traveled alone, save for a few times having an acquaintance was more helpful than not. Depending on how helpful said acquaintance turned out to be, Rumplestiltskin either Killed them, cursed them, or sent them on their merry way as if nothing had happened. He rarely awarded anyone, and he most certainly never worked with groups larger than three individuals, and he tended to stay away from working with more than one woman at a time. They were a smidge too complicated at times in his opinion. He respected them, but working with them could often be tiring. 

That is until today- 11 months and 28 days since his son’s disappearance he found himself trapped in a net he couldn’t poof out of for some light-magic wielding being had put a trapping spell on it. He’d tried to cut the ropes with his daggers only to find the spell prevented him of doing such as well. He could get himself out if he tried hard enough, as opposite as this persons magic was to his own it wasn’t that strong in theory, but he didn’t really want to waste his energy trying to break out of a net. So he simply sighed and swung impatiently until someone would come along and he could convince them to aid him. 

However someone never came. Instead a lot of someone’s did. A lot of female someone’s. Five young women came across his imprisonment. He heard them before he saw them. 

“Oh- Emma! Look! It looks like your net caught something!” Said one.

“My net caught something. Emma’s spell simply kept it caught.” Said another 

“Regardless- we caught something.” Said a third one.

“We know, she was just pointing out the net isn’t yours.” Said a fourth. 

“Oh- guys, enough…” Said the fifth- in an accent Rumple noticed was very different from the others. A little familiar if you ask him, he’d heard it before. It was one that someone couldn’t soon forget.“Let’s just see what we’ve got on our hands.” 

There was nothing but footsteps for a few mere seconds before the five of them were visible. And then the one with the fourth’s voice spoke from under her red hood. “What the hell is that?” 

Rumplestiltskin rolled his eyes and decided now would be a good time to speak up “What? I am not a what- I am a who!” He said jerking his body forward with enough force to cause the net to rock like a shallow pendulum. 

“Oh-“ Spoke the unique accented woman. “Our apologies sir! We’ll get you right down! Emma, Mulan? Cut him free?” She spun slightly to face her friends as it appeared she’d taken the lead, her chestnut curls bouncing on her shoulders.

“Not necessary Dearies.” Rumple sounded again “Just be rid of the trapping spell and I can free myself.” 

A blonde with the third woman’s voice stepped forward. “You have magic then?” She queried. “Mustn’t be very strong if you can’t get free a trapping spell.” She directed her palms towards the net and with a little concentration removed her magic from the ropes. 

“On the contrary- my magic is quite strong. I simply don’t want to waist my energy on escaping a trapper.” He poofed out of his confinement to appear just below it in his signature red puff. 

The blonde rose a brow and stepped back, recognizing the dark smoke as a sign of darkness. “That, and you wield dark magic. We’re opposites. I suppose escaping a net wouldn’t be worth the effort, would it?” 

Rumplestiltskin only allowed himself to nod in response. He was about to bid them farewell and continue on his trek when a question burned into his mind. “What exactly are five young ladies doing trapping beasts in the woods, if you don’t mind my asking?” 

They looked from one another, speaking with only their eyes in that way women tend to do before the first voice belonging to a red-headed girl spoke. “We’ll only tell you in exchange for your side. What are you doing wandering alone though the woods?” 

Rumplestiltskin saw no reason to fear them, however he wasn’t about to give them the full story. “Questing. Isn’t it obvious? And you?” 

The third woman’s voice belonging to the one clad in armour responded “Same with us.” 

The accented brunette seemed to be studying him over as they exchanged their few words. “Who are you, if I may ask?” She asked at last. 

“Why, I’m the Dark One!” He gave a shallow bow for show. “Rumplestiltskin’s the name- try not to wear it out. Who might you be?” He was actually rather interested in these women. It was obvious they all came from very different backgrounds- places in the least. He couldn’t help but wonder what brought them all here together. 

“Princess Belle French of Avonlea- Maurice’s kingdom.” She responded before gesturing to the blonde “These are my friends. Princess Emma Swan Charming from the Charming’s kingdom.” She pointed a thumb towards the one under the red hood “This is Ruby Red Lucas of RedWater Village. Between the two previously mentioned kingdoms.” Her thumb sought out its next victim in the armoured woman “Fa Mulan, Head-Knight Of Phillips Kingdom.” And finally she pointed towards the redhead. “And Princess Ariel Triton formerly of Tritons Sea- Kingdom, currently of the Maritime Kingdom- betrothed to Prince Eric.” 

Now Rumplestiltskin was even more curious. “And what exactly do three princesses- of different kingdoms, a head knight of another kingdom, and….” His eyes glanced over Ruby’s form and he sensed a sort of magic from her. The red cloak was a give away as to her type however. “A mutt… from no kingdom find worthy of questing towards together?” 

The women exchanged looks again, shrugging to each other at last but still having that wary, defensive sort of look in their eyes as they did so before Mulan spoke. “What’s it to you, Dark One?”

Rumplestiltskin couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “It is nothing in the slightest to me. I’m simply sensing that perhaps you lot could be in need of some assistance? Surely the situation must be quite dire if Princesses are set out to the forests.” 

“If you’re referring to your magic, we’ve no interest.” Emma told him with deadpanned expression. “Mine is capable enough for the journey.”

“You’re magic is simply light though, Dearie. There’s plenty you’re incapable of that I could conjure in a second’s time.” He should’ve just walked away at that point- would have under normal circumstances, however he couldn’t shake his curiosity. Something about these women gave him the impression they could be useful to his personal journey. “However I can read between the lines. You’re afraid of the darkness and deem it unnecessary. Dark magic isn’t my only offer. I can offer my influence as a means of help.” 

Mulan’s eyes narrowed. “If you’re meaning is that you’re male, you’re narrow-mindedness isn’t welcome.”

“My narrow-mindedness?” Rumple let out an impish giggle. “Oh I’m afraid you’re mistaken! No, no, it is not I who’ll take you un-seriously- Women are fully capable persons- it’s the townspeople!” He wasn’t lying. Though women could get annoying and tiring, he truly respected them.. He took a quick moment to eye over Mulan’s armour to remind himself of where he was going with his speech. “Though Philip’s kingdom is quite progressive, understanding, and allowing of a lady’s mind and will, others are not so much.” He thought a moment more. “The Charming’s Kingdom is allowing as well as Her Majesty, Snow White, does equals parts the rulings as her husband, but I’m sure Belle and perhaps Ariel here can vouch that in many of places a man’s word is higher that a women, Princess or not- especially in kingdoms that are not your own.”

The women looked to each other, speaking silently once more, by the glares some of them were giving to others it appeared as if there was a disagreement. With an exasperated sigh Belle seemed to ignore Emma, Ruby, and Mulan’s glares telling her not to trust the man before them and spilled their journey’s purpose. “We’re looking for people. We’ve each lost a person close to us in unexplained manners in recent months.” 

Rumplestiltskin’s brows skyrocketed in surprise. That sounded oddly familiar, however he schooled his expression as best he could. “Really? All of you have lost someone recently? They’ve not been seen or heard from?” 

Mulan sighed nodding. “Princess Aurora disappeared in the night eight months back. Philip’s tasked me with finding her as he’s much too busy solely running the kingdom in her absence.” 

Ariel looked to the floor “Eric’s been missing nearly seven months. He left to walk along the ports the night of our engagement and never came back. I’ve been worried since. His father sent out knights to find him, but I had to search around for myself.” 

“My Granny.” Ruby spoke “Five months ago. Ran for the market before it closed up for the night and didn’t return home. I knew something was wrong and ran off to look like she’d tell me to do. She always told me to fight like hell for what I wanted.” 

Emma sighed “A boyfriend my parents are unaware of.. Neal. Nine months. Never saw him again after a good date in the village. I thought maybe he just didn’t feel the same until I found out other people were loosing people in the night too. Thought maybe he’d been taken by who or whatever it was that was taking them.” She shrugged, a slightly hopeful look behind her eyes. 

They all looked towards Belle. Rumplestiltskin wondered who she would’ve run out under her father’s lock and key to find. He knew more of the Avonlea kingdom than the others, he’d grown up there after his father abandoned him with the spinsters, after all. He knew Maurice was a man’s king. He’d heard tales of how he’d lock his wife and young daughter in his tower if they said or did something he’d not agreed with. 

Belle seemed to sense his mild curiosity of her own questing. She huffed a sigh. “Just some boar my father wants me to marry. Prince Gaston LeGume Of Lord LeGume’s Kingdom. He’s only been gone four months and honestly, I don’t care for the guy one bit. I’m only out here to prove to both him and my father that women can be heroes too.” She paused “You’re from one of our villages aren’t you? You must know how my father is towards women.” Belle said. She’d obviously been studying his reactions and words for the expanse of he conversation. That was clear to him now. 

“Yes I am. An immigrant, obviously, by my accent- but yes. I spent a good chunk of my life in Maur-Ville.” He allowed himself to smile small and bowed again in her direction. “Pleasure to meet your acquaintance Princess- I’m surprised to see you in such good health after what tales I’ve heard of the King.” 

“Maur-Ville?!” She asked surprised. “I’ve been all through there. I spent a few weekends there with a family friend, in a cottage about twelve years back. Were you there then?” 

“Aye, I was. I looked quite different back then, thought. Fae’s curse works up a gross image. You really haven’t a chance in hell in recognizing me.” He nodded.

She considered his accent- probably finding the ways he spoke familiar and seemed to recall a memory, as her eyes grew. “You were the spinster!” Well perhaps she did have a chance in hell. “The one with the sweet young boy? You called him Bae…. How’s he been?” 

Rumplestiltskin was not only surprised that she recognized and remembered him but also remembered his son- who must’ve been only 6 or 7 at that time. She’d asked about him- should he answer? Should he tell her the truth? Could he trust them? He thought it over, taking in the fact that they were all missing someone too, and perhaps Baelfire was with those missing persons. Belle seemed trustworthy enough on her own. She’d been nice to him so far and he supposed she did in fact deserve an answer. An honest one. “Baelfire’s been….” He shrugged with a sigh “Missing for nearly a year now. Left in the night to join the Orc wars, which I ended myself days later- only to find out my son never made it to the war-camps. With some help from others in the past year I’d found out he’d had second thoughts, and made way towards the borders to the Charming’s Kingdom. I found nothing of him there however. It seems he’s disappeared as well.” 

Her eyes grew softer. “You’ve lost your son?” She looked around to the others, who appeared to have started setting up their camp during the conversation he and Belle had started to have. “Well, would you like to continue on traveling with us for a time? We’re heading south...” She paused “ Past the Evil Queen Regina’s land, towards the southern tip of the continent. We have reason to believe whoever’s been abducting our people have migrated in that direction.” 

He looked around at the lot of them again. He noted that none of them were dressed in billowing skirts or flowing gowns as was to be expected of modern women- they wore breaches and boots and leather, they carried weapons with them. Swords, daggers, bows, crossbows. They meant business. And if Belle was right in saying they were heading south… they’d need him and his magic, he couldn’t imagine the continent-wide horror and sorrow that’d take place if some of these women got hurt, or worse. “I suppose I could tag along for a little while. If that’s alright with your friends, of course.”

Belle also looked towards her companions “Well they appear to be getting pretty comfortable now, it’s safe to assume that you can camp out with us in the least. We’ll talk it over in the morning. Let’s get settled, shall we?” 

He nodded and after she’d turned to set herself up not far off, magic’d up his bedroll and something to snack on. He magically set up a small lean-to under a nearby tree, close but not too close to where the girls were. He sat against the trunk on his bedding, gnawing on some sort of dried meet he’d seen in a nearby village’s market the day before, and, eyeing his newest acquaintances as the settled themselves down for the night. Ariel, Ruby and Belle seemed to work together routinely as they chit-chattered quietly about something, Mulan had set up her own space and was currently shucking off her armour to get comfortable, and Emma appeared to be set up for the most part as well as she struggled on manually starting a fire. Silently wondering why she didn’t just use her magic to light it, he sent a spark her way and lit the fire for them all himself. He watched the blonde jump back in shock as the flame burst to life before glaring at him when realization dawned. He shrugged in her direction simply before tucking himself in under his covers for the night.

He silently thought about all the ways traveling with five young women could possibly go- most of which he ended up very much annoyed at them. Their quiet chirping about nothing as they readied for the night and their silent discussions of the eyes were telltale signs that they were like any other group of girls. He thought of the ways women tended to bicker and disagree, how they stuck there nose into business that wasn’t theirs and asked too many questions at times and even how their emotions were more… loud than those of a man. Sure, the lot he was currently camping nearby didn’t seem like the typical frail, nosey, little lassies he saw about the villages, but he was sure they’d all have their moments eventually. But if they could really help him find his son, perhaps he wouldn’t mind as much. 

“I can feel the headaches now…” He mumbled to himself with a slight chuckle, despite his previous ‘wouldn’t mind’ thought as he began to drift off. 

 

To be continued(?)

**Author's Note:**

> So that’s the first chapter for this concept, basically it just set in stone Rumplestiltskin’s past in this verse, how he became what he is, how he got where he is, yadda yadda.  
> If you liked it and would like to see more, kudos and comments are very much welcome! If you saw any mistakes or inconsistencies you’d like to point out, leave a comment and I’ll fix it up. Any ideas or general suggestions are also welcome in the comments. I’ll respond to all (or at least most) comments when I can... Thanks for reading! 
> 
> ~Trash


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